What I've learned since moving to D.C. (some of which should be obvious): 0249

12401.  Adding black sesame seeds to Rice Krispies treats gives them a nice Asian flavor/twist;

12402.  “Boys Noize” (i.e., Alexander Ridha) is German and Iraqi;

12403.  “Boys Noize” co-wrote Lady Gaga’s hit, “Rain on Me;”

12404.  Trent Reznor (of “Nine Inch Nails”) is 60. . . . He was born on May 17, 1965;

12405.  Nine Inch Nails is (essentially) EDM rock;

12406.  Trent Reznor says he doesn’t like talking in front of a lot of people/public speaking;

12407.  Trent Reznor has 6 children/kids;

12408.  Apparently, Schmidt likes to eat roses;

12409.  Roses are not poisonous to cats;

12410.  Bad news always gets worse with time;

12411.  George Washington was a surveyor.  He completed over 200 surveys in his lifetime including (surveying) Alexandria, Virginia;

12412.  Alexandria, Virginia, had an earlier name of Belhaven;

12413.  The moment in front of you is not bothering you, you’re bothering yourself about the moment in front of you;

12414.  I have my (own) back.  Even if I suck, I love myself anyways;

12415.  It’s not failure; it’s feedback;

12416.  Forgiving means letting go of the protective armor of blame and/or hatred that encases your heart;

12417.  Forgiving means never putting anyone, including yourself, out of your heart;

12418.  Forgiveness is the compassion that arises when we’ve brought full presence to the suffering of hurt and wounds;

12419.  Forgiveness is a process that unfolds over time;

12419.  Forgiveness is giving up all hope of a better past.  We cannot move forward if we’re still holding onto the pain of that past and wishing it was something else;

12420.  Forgiving does not mean we should deny or suppress our anger, fear, hurt or grief;

12421.  Forgiving is not condoning harmful behavior nor does it mean passivity or inaction;

12422.  When we forgive, we are in no way saying what you did is okay or that we’ll allow the behavior to continue;

12423.  While the energy of anger may catalyze us, it can’t sustain us in the long run.  We need forgiveness to go hand in hand with a deep dedication to social activism;

12424.  Forgiveness does not have to be done on our own;

12425.  Forgiving is rarely a one-shot or quick process;

12426.  Healing happens in stages;

12427.  For many people, blame and resentment are strongest in our closest, most significant relationships.  This means that we’re apt to be continually retriggered;

12428.  Self judgement or shame makes forgiveness more difficult;

12429.  You can’t will forgiveness, but you can be willing;

12430.  For your heart to be free, it needs to be inclusive not blaming.  From this place, you understand that you can’t truly be happy or feel loving if you’re holding onto anger and blame;

12431.  Our incapacity to forgive is directly related to our inability to feel joy in our life;